The sorority recruitment questions I receive most often center around either high school GPAs and/or legacy status. The importance of sorority recruitment and GPAs is pretty cut and dry; you can read all about that here. However, there’s a lot of misinformation out there regarding legacies. Read on for the nitty, gritty details!

What is a Sorority Legacy?

Here’s an example:  I was a Phi Mu, and my daughter was a legacy for Phi Mu during her recruitment. Do aunts and cousins count? Not anymore. With so many girls going through recruitment, the weight of second tier familial legacies is worth noting for sure, but it is not considered a direct legacy. So, pack that rush bag & let’s do this!

Will Legacy Status Help Me At My Legacy House?

                                                                Am I Guaranteed A Bid If I Am A Legacy?

Short answer: no. It’s not that houses don’t want to extend bids to all legacies, it’s simply a numbers game. Some chapters could fill not one but two pledges classes with legacies alone! While being a legacy will get you on the radar and may carry you to the second round of parties, bids are not a guarantee. You will need to maximize your options for your legacy house the same way you are doing for other houses if you are interested in a bid. Check out Why Sororities Cut Legacies to get the full scoop.

Long answer: maybe. If a chapter is colonizing and holding their first rush, nationals might institute a legacy bid policy which mandates all legacies be given every consideration, including a bid. This mandate sometimes holds over in the chapter’s first few years. The rule helps the chapter fill out their pledge class numbers as they build their chapter.

In rare cases (mainly at smaller colleges), legacies are given stronger consideration, and may indeed extend bids to all legacies. However, this is the exception not the rule.

Delta Delta Delta received many inquiries from alumnae as to their policies on legacies a few years ago. In fact, they published The Truth Behind Tri Delta’s Legacy Policy in their newsletter. It’s a prime example of how national chapters strive to honor legacy status while understanding the high volume of PNMs numbers their chapters must work withing during recruitment.

What If I Am Not A Legacy?
What Does This Mean For My Sorority Recruitment Experience?

Legacy status is NOT a deal breaker! If you are a PNM who maximizes her options, you can have a successful recruitment week. You’ve heard me mention more than once that the most critical factor in maximizing your options is TIMING. The earlier your rec packets arrive at the houses, the better! I’ve worked with girls who were not legacies, were OOS PNMS and were rushing at very competitive schools (hi there, Ole Miss & Bama!). They maximized their options and got bids from their first choice houses.

Why Do Houses Cut So Many Legacies?

With so many legacies going through recruitment, it is inevitable that legacy PNMs will experience cuts. While houses make every effort to hold legacies into Round 2 parties, even this is no guarantee. You can read all about why this happens and about cuts during rounds right here: Sorority Party Rounds and Cuts and Why Sororities Cut Legacies.

A legacy can be cut anytime during rush week, however a legacy who maximizes her options will have a good recruitment. And, conversely, a PNM that is not a legacy but chooses to maximize her options will have a solid rush week, too!

Another quick tip to maximize your options? ORGANIZE! I show you how Cee Cee did it in How To Pack For Sorority Recruitment ! You will see the actual outfits she wore, my dining table staging area….everything!

Oh, and you can also check out my five Sorority Recruitment Party Conversation Tips….find out what to say AND what not to say during rounds.

At the end of the day, you will end up in the house that is meant for you!

Have a question? Leave a comment below. 🙂

Heather

SHOP FOR SORORITY RECRUITMENT

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